Report: Foxx On The “Wish List” Of Cowell Replacements

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It was movie soundtrack night over at “American Idol,” and while it was nice to hear Crystal Bowersox do a remake of Kenny Loggins’ “I’m Alright” (but no dancing gopher?), there isn’t much suspense left to this “Idol” season. Bowersox is your likely champ, sure to join Taylor Hicks and that one fat dude among your lesser Idol winners. The only real suspense left on the show is watching new mentors come in every week and jockey to take Simon Cowell’s job, the easiest $15 million-a-year gig in the universe. And lo and behold, last night’s mentor and T-shirt distributor Jamie Foxx is on the show’s wish list to replace Simon. From

Foxx’s name continues to be mentioned as being on the wish list, along with Elton John and other A-listers…

Another Idol mentor this season, Harry Connick Jr. also made a strong case for himself as a potential Cowell replacement. In addition to the guessing game over Cowell’s replacement on Idol, there was also a lot of speculation about Cowell's choice to judge alongside himself on his upcoming Fox series The X Factor. British papers quote a close confidant of Cowell as saying that Mariah Carey is being considered for the job.

Well, if Carey joins Cowell over at “X Factor,” does it even matter if Foxx takes his place at “Idol”? Carey is Paula Abdul crazy made from concentrate. But I digress. The question here is whether or not Foxx would make an adequate replacement for someone who is, despite the apparent ease of his job, kind of irreplaceable. EW’s Michael Slezak says, “I don't think (Foxx) really brought much to the proceedings.” Craig Berman over at our sister site said of Foxx:

The guest mentor got about two inches from (Lee) Dewyze’s face at their rehearsal session. Lord bless him … for the second season in a row, Foxx had the contestants wondering whether he was a genius or a nut.

Ooh! Ooh! I know the answer to that! He’s a nutjob. I assure you. The man almost certainly still believes he’s Ray Charles. No way he doesn’t put on sunglasses at night and sing “Georgia On My Mind” at the baby grand in his bedroom before going to sleep. Does that make him a good replacement for Simon, as opposed to Connick or even Shania Twain, both of whom excelled at picking apart each contestant and nailing their strengths and weaknesses? I don’t think so. Paula Abdul’s job was to be the wild card, and now she’s been replaced by Ellen DeGeneres, who’s about as wild as playing Uno on a Friday night. That’s where you put the nutjob, in Ellen’s chair. Not in the lead chair.

Then again, if Cowell and Carey join forces, this is all academic, isn’t it?